Sports stats



Phantoms Weekly

January 17, 2011 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Adirondack Phantoms News Release


Phantoms Player Movement

This past week, the Adirondack Phantoms announced that forward Shane Harper had been loaned to the Greenville Road Warriors of the ECHL and defenseman Joonas Lehtivuori was loaned to KalPa Hockey Oy of SM-liiga in Finland.

In 20 games with the Phantoms this year, Harper registered a goal and two assists. The Valencia, CA native has been up with Adirondack since November 19. He has also played in 12 games with Greenville (SC) scoring 4 goals and 11 assists.

In 32 games with the Phantoms this year, Lehtivuori scored two goals and seven assists. Last season with Adirondack, Lehtivuori scored 5 goals and 18 assists in 66 games. He had previously played four years in the SM-liiga with Ilves Tampere from 2005-2008.

Adirondack Phantoms Team Leaders

Games: Ben Holmstrom and Greg Moore (43)

Goals: Denis Hamel (12)

Assists: Erik Gustafsson (23)

Points: Erik Gustafsson (27)

Plus/Minus: Cullen Eddy and Matt Clackson (-2)

Penalty Minutes: Zac Rinaldo (155)

Power Play Goals: Denis Hamel (8)

Short-handed Goals: Jonathon Kalinski (2)

Game-Winning Goals: Denis Hamel and Greg Moore (2)

Shots: Denis Hamel (118)

Saves: Johan Backlund (461)

Wins: Johan Backlund (4)

GAA: Michael Leighton (2.58)

Save Percentage: Michael Leighton (0.913)

2010-11 Record:

12-27-2-2, 28 points (Home 6-12-1-0, Road 6-15-1-2)

Week 15 Schedule

All games are broadcast LIVE on Classic Hits Q-101.7 FM by Adirondack Phantoms voice, Bob Rotruck, and can be heard free over the Internet at www.phantomshockey.com and can be viewed via internet pay-per-view video on www.ahllive.com qDveZeWjNjkli7DyXiFepiF_TQAw7nasWhke9w==].

Phantoms Open the Weekend in Philadelphia

Friday, January 21 - 7:00 p.m. - Wells Fargo Center - Philadelphia, PA

vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (32-9-0-0, 64 pts)

1st Place in Eastern Division, Eastern Conference

This will be the fifth of eight meetings between the Phantoms and Penguins. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton currently leads the season series 4-0. It will mark the second time these teams will have met over the past week. Eric Tangradi leads the Baby Pens with 16 goals in 35 games while Dustin Jeffrey who has spent time up in the NHL with Pittsburgh has 26 assists and 41 points in 37 games. Goaltenders John Curry (3-0 against the Phantoms this season) and Brad Thiessen (1-0 against the Phantoms this season) have split the time in net for the Eastern Conference leading Penguins. Wilkes-Barre had been on a 7-game winning streak until the Connecticut Whale defeated the Penguins 6-3 on Sunday afternoon in Connecticut. They are 8-2-0-0 in their last 10 and are now 15-4-0-0 on the road.

Double H Ranch Night

Saturday, January 22 - 7:00 p.m. - Glens Falls Civic Center - Glens Falls, NY

vs. Hamilton Bulldogs (23-13-1-4, 51 pts)

1st Place in North Division, Western Conference

This will be the second of four meetings between the Phantoms and Bulldogs. It will be the last time the Montreal Canadians affiliate comes to Glens Falls this season. Adirondack will play Hamilton twice in the month of February including a game at the Bell Centre in Montreal. The Hamilton Bulldogs top two goal scorers, David Desharnias and Max Pacioretty, are currently on recall to Montreal (NHL). Dustin Boyd leads the Bulldogs with 11 goals in 13 games while Ben Maxwell has a team-high 19 assists and 25 points. Goaltender Curtis Sanford is 15-7-3-0 and an AHL leading 1.74 GAA and .938 save percentage. Hamilton is 5-1-0-0 against the East Division this season and are 5-4-0-1 in their last ten. On special teams, Hamilton is ranked ninth on the power play converting 20.2% of the time and fifth on the penalty kill (85.8%).

Third Game in Three Days

Sunday, January 23 - 5:00 p.m. - Giant Center - Hershey, PA

@ Hershey Bears (23-14-1-2, 49 pts)

4th Place in Eastern Division, Eastern Conference

This will be the sixth of eight meetings between the Phantoms and Bears this season. Hershey currently leads the season series 4-1 and it will be the final time Adirondack travels to Chocolate Town, USA this year. Hershey has not been as dominate of a home-team this season posting an 11-8-0-1 record while last season they won 34 of their 40 home games. When leading after the second period, Hershey is 17-0-0-1 and 2-10-1-1 when trailing following the second intermission. Kyle Greentree leads the Bears with 15 goals and 35 points in 36 games while Lawrence Nycholat and Keith Aucion have a team-high 22 assists. Goaltender Danny Sabourin and Braden Holtby have both appeared in 2 games this season against the Phantoms. Sabourin is 1-1 with a 1.50 GAA and .940 save percentage while Holtby is 2-0 with a .960 save percentage.

Week 14 Game Results

January 14, 2011 - Hershey 3 @ Adirondack 0

Phantoms goaltender Michael Leighton made 25 saves in his second start since being assigned to Adirondack on January 4. The result snapped the Phantoms 6-game point streak. The Bears opened the scoring with 35 seconds remaining in the first period. Zack Miskovic scored his sixth of the year from the center point to beat Michael Leighton and give Hershey a 1-0 lead. The Bears extended their lead 4:22 into the second period. Steve Pinizzotto sent a cross-ice pass to Brian Willsie who put it into an empty net as Leighton was caught to the far side of the net. Adirondack outshot the Bears 15-8 in the final frame but Steve Pinizzotto sealed the game for the Bears as he scored his ninth goal of the season into an empty net with 15 seconds remaining. Adirondack finished 0-for-6 on the power play while Hershey went 1-for-4.

January 15, 2011 - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 4 @ Adirondack 2

Michael Leighton getting his second consecutive start made 27 saves while Greg Moore (5th) and Danny Syvret (6th) scored for Adirondack. Luke Pither made a stellar play in the Penguins zone to set up the Greg Moore goal that beat Wilkes-Barre goaltender John Curry top shelf to tie the score at 1-1. Brett Sterling though scored 1:22 later when a picked off a Phantoms pass in the neutral zone and went in on a 2-on-1, eventually beating Leighton top-shelf to give the Pens a 2-1 lead. The Penguins extended their lead to two in the third period on Nick Johnson's fourteenth goal of the year. After an empty net goal expanding the lead to 4-1, Danny Syvret on the power play blistered one from center-point banking it off the post past Curry. The Penguins outshot the Phantoms 31-30 while Adirondack went 1-for-5 on the power and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton converted on 1 of their 4 man advantages.

January 16, 2011 - Adirondack 5 @ Syracuse 2

Kevin Marshall (2nd), Stefan Legein (3rd), Luke Pither (7th), Rob Bordson (2nd) and Ben Holmstrom (8th) all scored for Adirondack as 11 different players appeared in the scoring column. Adirondack improved to 4-0 on the year against Syracuse. Stefan Legein scored his first goal since November 11 wristing a shot from the right circle between the Crunch goaltender J.P. Levasseur's legs. Luke Pither extended the lead to 3-1 1:15 later off a long rebound. Rob Bordson, who was traded to Adirondack along with defenseman Danny Syvret on November 21 for Patrick Maroon and David Laliberte, scored his first goal as an Adirondack Phantom. Johan Backlund made 24 saves to earn his fourth win of the season in his second start since returning on January 8. Adirondack outshot Syracuse 32-26 and improved to 4-2-0-2 in 2011.

Phantoms Quick Hits

-Rob Bordson scored his first goal as an Adirondack Phantom on Sunday in Syracuse

-Johan Backlund earned his first win since returning from injury on January 8. His last victory came in a 4-3 OT win on November 12 against Norfolk

-Adirondack is now 4-0 against the Syracuse Crunch this season after their 5-2 victory in Syracuse on Sunday

Phantoms Reebok/AHL Player of the Week (Week 14):

#31 - Johan Backlund- G - 1 GP (1-0-0-0, 2.00 GAA, .923 save percentage)

In only his second start since returning from injury, the Skelleftea, Sweden native made 24 saves to earn his first win since a 4-3 OT victory on November 12 vs. Norfolk.

Adirondack Phantoms Recent Transactions...

Jan 13 - Shane Harper (RW) Loaned to Greenville (ECHL)

Jan 15 - Joonas Lehtivuori (D) Loaned to Finish Elite League

Phantoms Practice Schedule this Week

Tuesday, January 17: Practice at 10:00 a.m.

Wednesday, January 18: Practice at 10:00 a.m.

Thursday, January 19: Practice at 10:00 a.m. / Bus to Voorhees @ 11:00 a.m.

Friday, January 20: Pre-Game at 11:00 a.m. / Game @ 7:00 p.m. vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (In Philadelphia) / Bus back to GF following the game

Saturday, January 21: Pre-Game at 10:00 a.m. / Game @ 7:00 p.m. vs. Hamilton Bulldogs / Bus to Hershey following the game

Sunday, January 22: Game @ 5:00 p.m. at Hershey Bears / Bus back to GF following the game

Monday, January 23: Practice at 10:00 a.m.

Upcoming Games:

Friday, January 21-7:00 pm - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins vs. Adirondack Phantoms (at Philadelphia)

Saturday, January 22 -7:00 pm - Hamilton Bulldogs at Adirondack Phantoms

Sunday, January 23-5:00 pm - Adirondack Phantoms at Hershey Bears

Wednesday, January 26-7:00 pm - Binghamton Senators at Adirondack Phantoms

Don't be left out! Tickets for all Phantoms games are on sale now. Discount rates are available for groups of 15 or more. Save off the individual ticket price by asking the Phantoms about their great group rate packages.

The AHL is celebrating their 75th anniversary season and is the top development league for the NHL. More than 85 percent of today's NHL players are American Hockey League graduates and more than 6 million fans attend AHL games every year.

Come watch future NHL stars and up-and-coming Flyers prospects with exciting Adirondack Phantoms hockey! A variety of ticket packages for all the fast-paced action are on sale now. The Phantoms selection of discount ticket packages includes 3-packs, 6-packs, 12 and 22 Select Plans, full season plans and Flex Packs. Choose the plan that works best for you! Get your tickets at the Phantoms office inside the Glens Falls Civic Center, online at ticketmaster.com, or by calling the Phantoms at 518-480-3355.

• Discuss this story on the American Hockey League message board...

American Hockey League Stories from January 17, 2011


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Adirondack Phantoms Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central